After Game of Thrones finished once and for all in May to a mixed response from its viewers, fans are now eagerly waiting for the latest instalment in the book series, A Song of Ice and Fire. Lucky for us, the book's author George RR Martin has given an insight into when we might be expecting the new novel, titled Winds of Winter.
The eighth and final season had mixed reviews
Writing on his blog, George confirmed he would be attending the World Science Fiction Convention in New Zealand on July 29 2020, and pledged to finish the novel before then. He wrote: "I tell you this, if I don't have The Winds of Winter in hand when I arrive in New Zealand for worldcon, you have here my formal written permission to imprison me in a small cabin on White Island, overlooking that lake of sulfuric acid, until I'm done."
George revealed the book should be finished by 2020
The celebrated author also gave his verdict on the Game of Thrones finale, and admitted that while his ending will be similar, there will be key differences. He explained: "I am working in a very different medium than [showrunners] David and Dan, never forget. They had six hours for this final season. I expect these last two books of mine will fill 3000 manuscript pages between them before I'm done… and if more pages and chapters and scenes are needed, I'll add them. And of course the butterfly effect will be at work as well.... There are characters who never made it onto the screen at all, and others who died in the show but still live in the books."
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Maisie Williams recently opened up about her one regret for season eight, telling EW: "I just wanted to be on set with Lena [Headey] again, she's good fun. And I wanted Arya to kill Cersei even if it means [Arya] dies too. Even up to the point when Cersei's with Jaime I thought [while reading the script], 'He's going to whip off his face [and reveal it's Arya] and they're both going to die.'"
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